


Code Names

by sauvignonfierce



Category: The West Wing
Genre: Christmas, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-24
Updated: 2014-04-24
Packaged: 2018-01-20 16:15:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1516976
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sauvignonfierce/pseuds/sauvignonfierce
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>C.J. isn't happy about her new code name, and Danny won't stop asking her out.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Code Names

        Danny scanned the bull pen. Josh was arguing with Donna about her Christmas present (he kept hearing something about skiing), while Sam seemed to be pestering Bonnie about where Toby had gone. CJ was out somewhere avoiding him and his tenth request of the day for a date.  
        “Charlie!” He said, springing up from his chair and bounding over to where the young man had just emerged from Leo’s office.  
        “Hey, Danny. Merry Christmas,” Charlie said, walking through the bullpen with the reporter.  
        “Yeah, Merry Christmas. Listen, I need a favor.”  
        “Danny, you seem like a nice guy but I’m the President’s bodyman. I’m pretty sure it’s not gonna look good on my resume if I leak you information,” Charlie said. He stopped walking and turned to face Danny, who was shaking his head.  
        “This isn’t about information or an article. This is more of a…personal favor,” he explained.           
        “Okay, then ask.”  
        “I need to talk to the President for two minutes.” Charlie stared at him.  
        “Danny. He’s the President of the United States. He’s even less keen to do a personal favor for a reporter than I am.”  
        “It’s for CJ.”  
          
        “Mr. President, can you see Danny Concannon for a few minutes?” Charlie asked, as the President settled down with a cup of coffee after lunch, a large file open in front of him.  
        “Why, Charlie?”  
        “He says it has to do with something for CJ. Something personal.” The President sighed and nodded.  
        “Send him in.” Danny smiled as he entered the room, extending his hand.  
        “Mr. President, thank you for seeing me.”  
        “Have a seat, Danny,” he instructed. He sat down on the opposite couch. “Charlie tells me you want to ask a favor,” he said.  
        “Yes, Sir. I made a foolish mistake with CJ and bought her a goldfish,” he said.  
        “A goldfish?”  
        “Josh told me she liked them, but he was talking about the crackers. I thought he meant a real goldfish and…”  
        “And so you bought her a goldfish,” the President said.  
        “Exactly, Sir.”  
        “And how can I help right this foolish little mistake?” Danny smiled, catching the sparkle in the Presiden’t eye.  
  
        “Josh, I need you for a minute,” CJ called into Josh’s office as she passed to sit in her own. He followed, tired and yawning.  
        “What’s up?” He asked, slumping in the chair across from her desk.  
        “Did you get the speech for Thursday from Toby and Sam?”  
        “Yeah, it looks good,” he said, fiddling with his tie.  
        “Can you check the working in paragraph 10? It sounds a little off to me,” she said, scanning the speech again.  
        “Did you tell Toby and Sam? Sometimes known as our speechwriters.” She shot him a look and he stood up.  
        “Looking it over, I promise,” he said in defeat, going back to his office. She sighed heavily and turned to the fishbowl on her desk. Gail was gone.  
        “Bonnie?” She called.  
        “Yeah, CJ?” Bonnie asked, coming in, notepad at the ready.  
        “Where’s my Gail?” She asked.  
        “Excuse me?”  
        “My fish! Where’s my goldfish, Gail?” She asked, standing up and pointing at the bowl full of water but no fish.  
        “Oh, Danny came by with a bag and took her.”  
        “Danny took my fish? He gave me the fish!” Bonnie opened her mouth but had nothing to say. “Go find Danny, now,” she said sternly. Bonnie nodded and raced out of the room. 

        “You rang?” Danny asked, wandering in a few minutes later.  
        “You stole my fish! You gave me the fish and then you took the fish. I don’t know how you do things, Danny, but this is not the way to get a girl to have dinner with you,” she said, sitting behind her desk and yelling at the reporter.  
        “I didn’t steal your fish, CJ. I borrowed her.”  
        “Where is she?”  
        “CJ,” Charlie said, stepping into her office.  
        “The President needs to see you for a minute.” She stood up and crowded Danny into the corner, finger jabbing into his chest.  
        “When I come back, if my fish isn’t back in her bowl, I’ll put your head in the bowl. Understood?” He nodded, swallowing hard.  
        “For the record, this is working for me,” he said. She rolled her eyes with a small smile and left with Charlie.  
        “Good afternoon, Claudia Jean,” the President said when she entered.  
        “Good afternoon, Mr. President. What can I do for you?” She asked, sitting when he motioned for her to join him.  
        “I hear that you have a little issue with the secret service,” he said. She was confused, looking around as if this was a big prank.  
        “An issue, Sir? I don’t have an issue with the secret service, I can promise you,” she said.  
        “That’s not what I hear, Flamingo,” he said, using her new codename.         
        “That issue? I’m not a fan of the name, but I’m certainly not complaining about it,” she explained. “Unfortunately, I can see why it fits.”  
        He chuckled. “I’m just teasing, CJ. Charlie!” Charlie stuck his head in.  
        “Yes, Sir?”           
        “Send Ron in,” he instructed. Charlie nodded.  
        “Yes, Sir.” CJ turned around to see Ron Butterfield walk in. She stood up.  
        “Ron, you remember CJ Cregg, CJ you remember Ron Butterfield,” he said.  
        “Of course. It’s good to see you again,” she said, shaking his hand.  
        “You too, ma’am,” he said.  
        “Ron here has a little Christmas present for you,” the President said, with a smile and humor in his voice.  
        “Okay…”she said, still very confused.  
        “We’ve assigned you a new code name,” Ron said.  
        “I know. Flamingo. I was just telling the President that there was some big misunderstanding. I don’t have a problem with the name, I was just blowing off steam to my coworkers-“  
        “CJ,” the President cut her off. She stopped talking.  
        “I’m sorry, Sir,” she said.  
        “Ron, please continue.”  
        “Yes, Sir. Ms. Cregg, we’ve been requested by the President to change your newly assigned code name from Flamingo to Goldfish,” he said. She broke out into a grin, looking from the President to Ron.  
        “Thank you, Ron. That’s all,” the President said.  
        “Thank you, Mr. President. Ms. Cregg,” Ron said, nodding to the both of them and leaving the room.  
        “Mr. President, this was really unnecessary,” CJ said.  
        “I couldn’t agree more,” he said. “But it wasn’t my idea.”  
        “Whose idea was it, Sir?” She asked. “I think someone named Gail,” he said, a mischievous smile on his face.  
        “Merry Christmas, Claudia Jean. You should go. I think you’ve got a date tonight,” he said. She stood up.  
        “Merry Christmas, Sir. Thank you.” He nodded warmly and she left.  
        Danny was sitting in her chair when she got back to her office, sprinkling fish food into Gail’s bowl, watching her swim around.  
        “What was that all about?” Danny asked knowingly, smiling.  
        “I don’t know how you pulled all of this off, but….thank you,” she said. He grinned widely.  
        “Dinner tonight, Goldfish?” He asked.  
        “Fine. No seafood.”


End file.
